Friday, December 8Noon–1 p.m.Humphrey ForumHumphrey School of Public Affairs

Appointed as Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in January 2017, Ahmed Hussen oversees all elements of Canada’s immigration, humanitarian resettlement, visa, temporary foreign worker, and citizenship policies. He will discuss Canada’s approach to these policies, as well as Canada’s government priorities.

Born and raised in Somalia, Ahmed Hussen immigrated to Canada in 1993 and quickly gravitated toward public service. After completing an undergraduate degree in history at York University, he co-founded a neighborhood community council and helped secure a $500-million revitalization project for the area. He also served as the national president of the Canadian Somali Congress—a Somali community organization that works with national and regional authorities to advocate on issues of importance to Canadians of Somali heritage and strengthen civic engagement and integration.

Hussen is the first Somali-Canadian to serve Canada’s parliament, elected in 2015. He began his career in politics and policy as an assistant to Dalton McGuinty, then a member of the Ontario Provincial Parliament and later Premier of Ontario. Hussen earned his law degree from the University of Ottawa and practiced in the areas of criminal defense, immigration, refugee and human-rights law.